Forbidden Embrace
by leeto
Summary: When the Sunagakure ambassador is attacked, Temari runs into the one boy she's been trying to avoid while chasing the assailant. Will she be able to continue on, or will her emotions endanger the mission again? Shika x Tema, timeskip period
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Night Disturbed

- - -

The coolness of the night was beginning to settle in. Temari sighed gently, as she sat up on the wall to watch the stars. Behind her was the Sunagakure Embassy, where highly-important people she didn't care about were having a celebratory dinner in honor of the completion of the building. From the beginning, she couldn't bare this assignment; she couldn't bear any assignment that meant going to Konoha since her last mission there. Gaara had forced her to come on this one; he couldn't stand having her mope around all day in the offices, it looked bad for the newly appointed Kazekage to have a depressed sibling. She should've been inside, keeping a closer watch on the Suna Ambassador. But when Temari found out who else from Konoha was coming to oversee the event, she switched out duties with another Suna jounin so that she could be posted outside of the building.

Anything that reminded her of him, that boy Shikamaru, brought her pain now. It was hard enough that every time she looked up at the sky from her office window in Suna that she was reminded of Shikamaru. Never could she imagine having to work with him again, so she tried all she could to convince the other shinobi to switch assignments with her. The place was loaded with highly-trained shinobi from both of their villages watching for trouble, so she wouldn't be needed there anyway.

But she hated him for that. She hated the fact that she was so often reminded of him, of his carefree, seemingly apathetic nature and how she found the small, stupid "hobbies" he took part in enjoyable as long as she was with him. She hated Shikamaru for always being there; being in her mind, even when she was trying so hard to push him out of her life, to forget about him. She hated the way he'd argue her decisions and opinions in a way no other shinobi had. She hated how she, beyond any logical reason, was deeply and madly in love with Shikamaru.

Being in Konoha alone to her thoughts wasn't helping her either. Simply entering the gates earlier in the day brought back painful memories of that day. The day when she vowed she could never see Shikamaru again. But none of that mattered anymore; she would have to find a way to move on. How would it look, the older sibling of the Kazekage, torn to pieces? She would at least have to appear to be strong, at least for her brothers' sake. Kankuro didn't understand, and Gaara just wanted the whole thing to be done with. Temari chanced another gaze at the star-lit night sky. Memories of cloud gazing with Shikamaru began to rush through her mind, all the amazing and breath-taking times they had shared before, and Temari couldn't fight it any longer. She let her feelings take her over, consume her, and she could feel her eyes begin to water and redden. Temari began to think, "If only I could've been stronger for him that day…"

- - -

_"Temari, get out of here! I can handle it!" Shikamaru yelled at Temari. The Akatsuki agent watched from the tree branch above them as Shikamaru argued with Temari. "Trust me Tema, you need to keep moving and catch up with them before it's too late and we lose him again!" _

_Temari looked at Shikamaru, uncaring of his opinion of the situation. He had already sustained injuries to much of his body; there was no way he could hold up against this Akatsuki."Shikamaru, you won't last a second against this guy, go on with the rest of the team, I'll handle him!"_

_"Temari, you can run faster than me, just listen to me once for damn sake! Stop worrying about me!"_

_"Shikamaru, no! You listen to me!"_

_The Akatsuki agent leaped from his place in the trees. "Oh, for Pete's sake, I'll kill both of you!" He produced three kunai from his pocket, and flung them towards Temari._

_Temari looked up, and prepared her fan to swipe away the incoming kunai. Just as they got in range, Temari swept her blade in an arc, but instead of a clang of the kunai being deflected as she expected, puffs of smoke were all that occurred. _

_"Shit! Shadow clones?" She looked back up to see another set of kunai about to strike her. Her arms weren't set to protect herself in time before she'd be hit by the projectiles, still in motion from her last deflection. Temari braced herself for impact as best she could, and heard the gushing sound of metal puncturing flesh. Yet, she felt no pain. To her horror, when she looked back up she saw Shikamaru right in front of her, the kunais dug into his right arm and leg. Temari froze in place, shocked by the sight of the man he loved pierced by so many of the dangerous weapon. She wanted to scream out his name, or do anything, but all of the muscles in her body were stuck in place._

_Their opponent, unfazed by Shikamaru's attempt to protect Temari, flung another barrage of kunai at Shikamaru. "Damn," Shikamaru thought to himself, "I can't move my leg anymore. Poisoned kunai?" As if to answer his question, his right arm began to feel the paralyzing effect of the venom as he got hit in the chest with three more kunai. _

_Pleased with himself, the Akatsuki retook his former position on the tree. "Heh heh, you two aren't my targets. Shame I can't kill you, but Itachi's orders, no unnecessary kills. Damn. Maybe next time!" With a deep laugh, the Akatsuki left Temari and Shikamaru behind in the forest._

_Shikamaru looked up at Temari, who was kneeling beside him now, trembling from the fact that the one boy that she thought she could ever love might die, and that it might've been her fault. He coughed, and blood spurted out of his mouth. "T-Temari. You, t-troublesome woman…" He tried to raise his arm up to her face, but he began to slip in an out of consciousness. _

_Shikamaru's body was a wreck. One internal organ was punctured and he was losing blood fast from the multiple wounds. Temari called for a medical ninja on their wireless radio, hopefully one would be in range. She had never been one to cry: having a brother with a demon locked up inside him and being the eldest child in her family had made her strong, and to cry would only ruin her reputation But now, she couldn't help it, and tears began to slide down her face. "Shikamaru, this is my fault. Damnit! If I just listened to your stupid head just once…my fault…my fault…"_

_- - -_

As Temari fell deeper within her thoughts, an explosion echoed behind her. Quickly woken from her daydream,Temari looked back to see a cloud of smoke emerge from one side of the embassy building. Quickly, Temari took her fan off her shoulder and ran to the site of the explosion. She could hear the screams as she got closer, and realized the attack was an assassination attempt. Someone attacked the Sunagakure Ambassador! Temari got up on a nearby rooftop to survey the scene. From the corner of her eye, she saw a shadow quickly dart for the nearby woods. Sensing whoever that was might've been part of the attack, she began her pursuit.

"Temari here," she called into her radio. "I think I've caught sight of the assailant, I'm going to pursuit. He's not going to get away!" And with that, Temari was in the woods, chasing the disturbance of the night. In front of her, she could faintly see the person she was chasing. The cracking of wood as they leapt from tree to tree filled her ears, and adrenaline began to pump through her veins.

Then, she heard an extra noise. It was the sound of someone running, but it wasn't coming from in front of her where the attacker was running. From behind, she heard another set of feet, running through the undergrowth. Temari came into a small clearing in the forest and took a quick glance behind her. And there, running alongside her, was him. The boy that she forced herself to try to forget about. The boy who treated her differently from all the others. The last boy she wanted to see. The only boy she had ever loved.

Shikamaru.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A Chase Complicated

- - -

Temari stopped, and watched Shikamaru run towards her. Was this some twisted act of fate that he'd also be chasing the attacker? She could feel her legs begin to weaken at his sight, and tried her best to maintain herself. He appeared to be fully healed from that mission four months ago, but the pain of feeling she was the one responsible for his injuries lingered within her.

As Shikamaru rushed past her, he yelled, "Long time no see, woman. Keep running, we're going to lose him!" Temari heard his words, but at hearing the voice she hadn't heard for so long her legs wouldn't respond at all. Feelings of shock and her emotions for Shikamaru held her firmly in place where she was standing. "Well, didn't you hear me Temari?! Let's go! Troublesome woman…"

She regained her focus, and could feel her legs again. Temari, now behind Shikamaru, continued the chase. The forest was beginning to thin, and if they got to the clearing there chances of keeping up with the attacker would become very slim, especially if he was very fast. With effort, she tried to yell at Shikamaru. "Hey, what are you doing here!? This isn't your fight!"

"What the hell are you talking about, of course it is!"

"If you haven't noticed, this was an attack on the Suna Embassy. This is a Suna mission!"

"Well, if YOU haven't noticed Temari, this was an attack on Konoha soil! So shut up and help me catch this guy!"

"Ugh! Damn you Shikamaru…Why won't your stubborn head listen to me!" Using her fan to get more air behind her, Temari leaped through the air and got side by side with Shikamaru, and they continued to run through the forest. Temari chanced a glance at the boy beside him. His normal motivation-free face was instead one of determination. She was always amazed with this boy. One minute, he could have no care in the world about what was going on, and the next he'd be the serious strategist that he gets so much praise for.

"What's there to listen to? We're the good guys chasing the bad guys! End of story!"

Temari had to struggle to keep her tears inside as they continued to argue. "Because! I won't be able to stand seeing you get hurt again!"

Shikamaru was taken aback by Temari's statement. He had heard that she was actually a caring person at heart, at least towards her brothers. "Hmph, you women are all the same. You worry too much. I'm no good at this distance, but we are getting closer. Can't you do something to slow him down? This is getting bothersome…"

Temari cringed inside at Shikamaru's reply. Does he not share the same feelings that she does? She tried to shrug it off and maintain concentration on the task at hand. "Grr, fine! This chase ends now! Fūsajin no Jutsu!" She swept her large fan up, and a whirlwind of dust launched ahead of them towards the assailant. The dust and sand covered all the trees as it went by, and the assailant lost his footing on the branch he stepped on. Temari then used the wind to push him down onto the ground.

"Now is our chance Temari, let's move!" Shikamaru leaped up higher up the trees, preparing his kunai as they closed in on the now grounded enemy. Temari dropped down to ground level, preparing her fan to use as a blunt weapon in a head-on attack. The assailant began to get up off the ground, and seeing Temari first, hurled a shuriken towards her.

Temari saw the throwing star going her way, and got lost in her memories. The view around her melted as she began to relive the last time she fought an opponent alongside Shikamaru. She saw in her head the same scene of Shikamaru receiving a direct hit from the kunai, but instead was now watching the scene from his viewpoint. She looked down at her arms and instead saw Shikamaru's, which appeared to be drenched in blood and puncture wounds. Subconsciously, Temari began to scream and tears began to fall from her eyes, as her mind became flooded by the intensity of the flashback. She could feel a hole within her body dig deeper into her, a hole that had been torturing her even since that fateful mission. Shikamaru looked back after hearing Temari's yells, and noticed she wasn't doing anything to protect herself from the shuriken, being too paralyzed by the images flashing through her mind.

"Temari!" he yelled, "Look out!" Shikamaru's voice brought Temari back to the present situation and, reacting quickly, expanded her fan and with a large swipe flung the shuriken harmlessly to the side, where it got stuck into a tree trunk. Temari swung her blade around again, and forced a gush of wind towards their opponent. The assailant had to brace himself to keep from being pushed back, and while that was distracting him Shikamaru threw his kunai. Sensing more danger, the assailant used a jutsu to change the position of his body with a log on the other side of the tree that was behind him, and began to run from Temari and Shikamaru again.

"Damn, he's on the move again. Let's go Temari!" Shikamaru ordered to Temari.

"I think I told you quite clearly to GO BACK, I can handle this lowlife on my own. I do believe it was me who beat Tayuya for you!"

"Heh, whatever woman. I don't care what you say, I'm going along and beating this guy with you."

Temari looked at Shikamaru, trying to show her disgust. Really, somewhere inside her she was glad that he was being stubborn and staying with her. Just being in his presence made her feel better, made her emotions for him get violently stirred up with her. She knew it was silly to want him to be safe; they were ninjas for crying out loud! But she couldn't help it: that's how much she loved him.

Shikamaru continued, "And besides, Temari," he took a pause, and looked at her until her eyes met his. "I don't ever want to leave your side again. Being away from you for so long made me realize that. Hell, I'm not even thinking this through, but I don't care. It'd be too troublesome if I were to be away from you again."

Once again, Temari couldn't hold her emotions in, and tears began to form at her eyes. The love that she once thought was unrequited was in actuality shared between them. She felt as if a new warmth was filling her body, like a hole was being filled up that made her feel whole again. "But hey, Temari, lets hold the waterworks for now, we've got a guy to catch," And with that, Shikamaru gave her that passive smirk of his and led the way as they continued their chase.

For the first time in months, Temari smiled.


End file.
